


Stifled laughs and gentle touches

by DreamyStar



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Adoption, Father-Son Relationship, Feels, Flashbacks, Gen, Ghosts, Grief/Mourning, Multiple Pronouns for Eret (Video Blogging RPF), Past Character Death, Platonic Relationships, Promises, Sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:54:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27697907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamyStar/pseuds/DreamyStar
Summary: An old promise, forgotten by all but one. A flock of flamingos and quiet giggles. An offer, followed by a relieved laugh and words of reassurance. A ghost of a man who once loved, finally free.
Relationships: Eret & Floris | Fundy, No Romantic Relationship(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 96





	Stifled laughs and gentle touches

Eret pushes himself off the last rung of the ladder, sitting on the roof of the camarvan. He slides over to the side, finding himself situated next to Wilbur. 

It's early in the morning but the entirety of L'manberg is already awake. Wilbur looks somewhere ahead of himself, and as Eret follows his gaze he spots the rest of the citizens, running around the field. 

Fundy seems to be chased by Tommy as Tubbo runs after them, laughing loudly. Fundy shrieks playfully as he's tackled to the ground, the soft grass catching his fall. Eret can hear the faint giggles in the chill air, and he smiles involuntarily. 

He looks back to Wilbur, who has a smile on his lips as well. He exhales with contempt. This is all any of them could've ever wanted. 

"Eret", Wilbur starts, his eyes fixing on the man again. "Can... can you promise me something?" 

"What is it?", Eret hums, looking out again. Fundy is now taking revenge on Tommy, tickling him mercilessly. 

"Tommy and Tubbo are too young, and I'm not sure who I can trust right now...", Wilbur pauses, trying to find his words. "If... if something happens to me during the war- or in general, could... could you take care of Fundy for me?" 

Eret catches Wilbur's gaze, and it's sad and as if full of regret. Eret thinks, for just a couple seconds, and then nods. He looks at Fundy, at the way the boy smiles, and has his answer ready. 

"I promise" 

\--- 

Eret stares, dumbfounded. Why is his castle full of flamingos? _Why is his castle full of flamingos?_

She catches a figure in the corner of her eye and whips around, just quickly enough to see an orange tail disappear behind one of the buildings. He hears something like a stifled laugh coming from the same direction, and he can't help but smile. 

He walks forward, carefully maneuvering around the flamingos, as he heads towards his throne room. He thinks back to Fundy, and hopes the kid is okay. He's still so young, they realize, and he's already being separated from his dad. 

He plops down on the throne, sighing. Though Eret's helping Pogtopia, he wishes he could make sure Fundy's alright. Once again, regret flashes through his heart. 

He shakes his head. The past is in the past, and he just has to hope others can forgive him for what he's done. 

Even though the castle feels a lot less empty with all the flamingos inside. 

\--- 

Eret hesitates, their hand hovering over the wooden door. He's been standing there for a while now, putting off this visit. 

It's been a good couple of days since the war, and everyone has been trying to deal with the aftermath. He knows Fundy threw himself into work, into building new L'manberg. He can't blame the kid, though. 

After all, Eret has only lost his crown. Fundy has lost his father. 

She thinks of Wilbur, of the old L'manberg. Of Fundy's smile when he was younger. Of the promise. And she finally brings up the courage to knock on the wooden frame loudly. 

The door creaks open after a couple of seconds. Fundy's face flashes with surprise as he spots the man. Eret can't help but cringe at the way the boy's thin frame seems even more shrunk on itself. 

"Eret! Fancy seeing you here!", he exclaims, shuffling backwards to make way for Eret. He smiles. "What brings you here?" 

Eret steps inside, taking in the smell of pine and flowers that surrounds him. The house is nice, he thinks. Very homely. 

"I needed to talk to you about something", he says, and Fundy's shoulders slump slightly. The boy leads her to a table and they sit down. 

"So... what did you want to talk about?", Fundy asks, fiddling with his fingers nervously. Eret sighs. 

"Since... since Wilbur is gone", he starts, and he can't help but notice the way Fundy flinches at his words. "I'm not sure how your relationship with Phil is, and I know you're scared Techno will go after you, so..." 

Eret pauses, taking a deep breath in. Fundy has completely retreated into himself at this point, and she steels herself for a rough reaction. 

"I... I was wondering if I could adopt you as my son" 

The words echo through the house loudly. Fundy's head shots up immediately, staring at Eret in disbelief. His lip twitches. 

Eret looks away, feeling his cheeks heat up. Fundy is going to refuse, of course Fundy's going to refuse. Fundy doesn't trust hi- 

"I- yes", he hears instead. He focuses back on Fundy, who looks a little embarrassed. But his eyes hide excitement poorly. "Yes! Yes, I would love to be your... y-your son" 

His ears are pressed against his head as he blushes. Eret snaps out of their daze as they take hold of Fundy's hand gently, and they catch his gaze. 

"I... I would love to be your father, too" 

Fundy blushes even harder. He stands up and circles the table, only to tentatively wrap his arms around the man. He smells like sweetberries and spruce wood, Eret notes. 

"Dad", Fundy whispers, as if tasting the word on his tongue. Eret breaths out a laugh, a certain weight gone from his chest. 

He pulls back, rising to his feet. He hesitantly, carefully, rests his hand on Fundy's head. He feels the soft hair under his fingers, along with the delicate fox ears sticking out of it. 

He's gentle as he ruffles Fundy's hair, and he sees the boy's eyes lighting up slightly. She takes his hand in her own. 

"Do... I prepared the adoption papers but they're back at my castle... Do you want to go take care of them?", Eret offers, smiling. 

Fundy just nods, gripping Eret's hand tighter. He lets out a small laugh, dragging Eret towards the door. His face shines with excitement. 

Eret follows after him quickly. The way Fundy smiles reminds him of that day a long time ago, before everything went wrong. He hasn't seen Fundy- no, his son- this happy in a long time. 

He giggles. His son. Fundy is his son. 

\--- 

A ghostly figure hovers just above the wooden roof. He watches silently as the two hurry through the streets below, cheerful chatter filling the air. 

As they disappear in the distance he smiles, sighing. His hand rests on the hole in his chest gently, though it doesn't hurt. Nothing hurts, not anymore. 

A feeling spreads over his chest, and it's serene-like. It's calming, in a way, he thinks, as memories seep out of his mind. 

Fundy is safe. Fundy is safe, and cared for, and has a better father than the figure could ever be. He feels as if there's something important missing, something old that he should remember. Whatever it is, it doesn't seem to matter, he decides. 

Fundy is loved, recovering from whatever the figure did to him when he was alive. Fundy will be okay. 

With that thought Wilbur Soot slowly fades away, his ghostly form merely a memory. There's a smile on his face as he lets go of the realm of the living, amends made and loose ends wrapped up. He can finally rest in peace.

**Author's Note:**

> Here's a little one shot I absolutely needed to write after Eret canonically adopted Fundy! This is basically that, with added sadness, regret and grief. For the feels.
> 
> I saw the idea of Eret, Sally and Ghostbur fighting over custody of Fundy floating around, but I found this even nicer. That Wilbur was trapped as a ghost in the mortal plane because of his unfinished business, which is Fundy, and now that Fundy isn't alone anymore and is loved, he can pass on.
> 
> Sorry if this isn't as good as my other work, I kinda wrote it on a whim. See ya next time!


End file.
